Components
by Genril
Summary: <html><head></head>Perhaps the hardest part of the journey wasn't surviving what fal'Cie and Gran Pulse had in store, but each other. Fang/Lightning</html>
1. Chapter 1: Spark Ring

**Components**

**Chapter 1: Spark Ring - (Lightning Resistance +20%)**

The group's first day on Gran Pulse had been eventful to say the least; in a last minute attempt to become unbranded before moving on to tackle Taejin's Tower, Snow had suggested helping to liberate some of the many C'ieth stones. Upon seeing the first ancient stone, he had strode to the front of the group, placing a gloved hand upon the stone and addressed them as he would NORA.

"This could be the opportunity we've been looking for guys!" He laughed, hitting his fists together in his usual brash manner. "Help a few of these guys out and they might remove our brands!"

The rest of the group did not seem convinced. Lightning, crossed her arms and sighed, pacing slightly.

"Yeah. Help a few of these guys out, waste time and turn C'ieth. Brilliant plan." Her words directed mostly to the floor as she tried in vain to suggest what to do next.

"Or worse," exclaimed Sazh "try help a brother out, and die in the process."

Fang snorted behind him.

"You guys _really _don't know what you're in for. This is no playground, no _Cocoon_. We'll need these l'Cie powers if we want to get out of here alive."

Hope instantly stepped beside Snow, as if to show his allegiance to the brawler's cause.

"Yeah but it may also give us a chance to explore this place."

Fang stepped towards the boy as he spoke, placing her hands on her hips and leaning forward to become eye level with him.

"We can just as easily explore this place without the need to help out a few failed l'Cie." said Fang, prodding Hope on the forehead. "And luckily for you guys, you have two top notch guides with firsthand experience."

Hope rubbed his forehead, frowning with annoyance as Fang walked away laughing, back towards Vanille.

"How about a compromise, you guys?" suggested the redhead. "We'll help out any stone we find, but otherwise move on… pleeaaase Fang?" pleaded Vanille, tugging on Fang's sari.

"Fine." Lightning cut in. "Compromise it is, keep the kids happy and the adults from complaining." She finished with a hint of mockery in her voice, and began to walk north, using the brief clues of the C'ieth stone to find their mark.

"That's the spirit!" Snow cheered, his right arm punching the air in victory. "Keep the kids happy." He beamed and ruffled Hope's hair, who remarkably, seemed to have warm towards Snow at last and smiled in response.

Sazh sighed and fell in step with the blonde sentinel. "She meant you too, you know."

_'The mark was easy enough to spot.' _Lightning thought as she crouched behind a small ledge by the pond, she studied the movement of the large gelatinous beast with keen eyes; waiting for it to turn it's back on her. The monster seemed suspicious, suddenly becoming more aware of its surroundings and slid in multiple directions in order to gain a better view of the area. It moved away from where Lightning was hiding, and she swiftly drew her gunblade, ready to strike. She was about to leap forward when a sharp tug on her cape forced her to the floor unceremoniously, her eyes darted to the right, guessing correctly, the culprit was none other than a smirking Fang.

"_What?_" the soldier hissed, as to not alert the fiend to their whereabouts. Fang rolled her eyes and quietly laughed to herself.

"Did you not hear me back there? This ain't no ordinary monster ya hear?" lectured Fang. "This is an Ectopudding and despite the slow looking nature of it, it can swipe at you hard and fast, okay?"

Lightning tugged her cape from Fang's grip and repositioned herself back into a crouch.

"An _Ectopudding_? Who names these things?" she muttered under her breath. At a glance she guessed the beast would not be able to see her attack from it's current peripheral vision. A firm hand grabbed her sword arm, once again holding her back as she tried to go for the creature a second time, causing her to glare and resist the urge to smack the Pulsian.

"Stop touching me." Lightning spat, tugging her arm away from Fang, whose hand instead occupied her hair, as if to calm the soldier down. It had stunned her to say the least.

"Hold on a second there, at least wait for backup " Fang said, combing her fingers through her pink hair before tucking it behind her ear in one swift, but daring motion.

"It's water based and physical attacks are useless."

"Are you quite finished?" asked Lightning impatiently, her eyebrows dipping to make a frown.

"I am now, _Smiler_." Fang teased.

Lightning looked away for a split-second, feeling rather uncomfortable with the Pulsian's invading hands. She recovered with a deep breath, planning her next words carefully.

"Fortunately for me, it has a weakness to _lightning_." She said, quickly looking Fang in the eyes.

Fang had little time to dwell on the comment however, as Vanille appeared to her right, striding ankle deep in the pond water.

"I told the boys to wait at the stone, so let's show 'em how it's done." The redhead smiled.

"Well then, what are we waiting for?" asked their leader, who threw a quick Ruin spell and the back of the unsuspecting Ectopudding, as Fang and Vanille followed suit.

Lightning made the finishing blow to the fiend, aiming a thunder spell at point blank range. During the battle she had attempted a Sparkstrike, despite Fang's warning that physical attacks were useless, and realised her mistake once her sword became stuck in its back. It roared out of anger, rather than pain and aimed its heavy blows at Lightning once it sensed her vulnerability. It had caused the team to quickly change roles, Fang switching to sentinel in order to distract the beast long enough for Vanille to fish Lightning's blade out with her rod. It had caused endless teasing from Fang, who couldn't resist laughing at her blunder between provoking the Ectopudding and defending herself from hits. Lightning had been red faced throughout the rest of the battle.

"Don't breathe another word of this." Lightning warned the two Oerbans, sounding exasperated.

"Wouldn't dream of it." Fang snorted.

"I won't say anything, I promise." Vanille said sincerely as she opened a clear, empty vial and scooped what was left of their kill into it. "Wonder gel is great for healing burns," she explained to the soldier who curiously watched her from afar "and styling hair too! Fang will you carry this?" Vanille threw the bottle towards the huntress who quickly deposited it.

The three walked back in a comfortable silence, allowing Lightning to think in peace. Her Blazefire saber remained in her grip, still dripping with goo. Despite not showing signs of it, Fang had managed to scare her earlier, daring to run her hands through her hair. Lightning had suspected the woman to have an interest in her, she was from Cocoon afterall and an equal in combat, but not _that_ type of interest. The woman was her complete opposite.

_She's loud, self-confident and wild. _Certainly not her type – not that she had one. _She's also a woman, for goodness sake. I'm certainly not into women. _Lightning thought quickly. _I've never even had interest in men before, for that matter._

Lightning thought back to one of the many times she'd overheard soldiers under her command describe her as being asexual, and she pretty much had been until now. But that hadn't stopped her from almost castrating the man.

_AN__: I don't fully know where I intend on taking this... I have multiple different ideas, but a lot of them start after the ending of the game, but I wanted to establish a relationship first. It's hard to think of a storyline when I've read so many other fics, in case I'm copying ideas or something! Feel free to make any suggestions, potential ideas and constructive criticism... which I must learn to accept because I've taking an English + Creative Writing course at University at the end of this year! (hopefully)_


	2. Chapter 2: Black Belt

**Components**

**Chapter 2: Black Belt - (Physical Resistance +10%)**

It had taken only minutes for them to reach the boys back at their undesignated checkpoint; who were sitting comfortably near the C'ieth stone, lazily pointing at one of the many Gran Pulse wonders. Lightning inhaled sharply, sounding her annoyance at the three, who had dumped the majority of the group's inventory – as well as their jackets – in the middle of the circle, in favour of sunbathing. Sazh was first to spot the approaching trio and made an effort to rummage around the disregarded items in front of him, pulling out a flask of water, before throwing it to Vanille.

"There you go, little lady." He smiled. Vanille nodded her thanks and didn't hesitate to take the first mouthful.

"How come she gets to drink first, old man?" asked Fang as she approached, with no hints of seriousness in her voice.

"Because _she _never tried to abandon me after going psycho on a Purge train," Lightning scoffed at this, fishing out another water bottle from the disorganised pile and taking a seat beside Sazh. "And you haven't done anything to me yet, but I'm not convinced it'll stay like that."

Fang grinned. "Are you trying to say I'm a troublemaker, you old geezer?"

Sazh held his hands up defensively. "Nuh-uh. I'm not trying to say anything."

Fang sat down by Vanille, who handed her the water as she did so. Snow, who had been lying in the sun with his arms behind his head, sat up and began laughing to himself.

"Who you calling old, Fang? I'd say you were a _lot _older tha- ow! What was that for?" yelped Snow, rubbing his forehead. Fang had instantly thrown the flask in his face. The group collectively laughed, including Lightning, who enjoyed the fact that someone else seemed to take pleasure in hurting Snow.

"You don't ever comment on a woman's age." She smirked, glancing in Fang's direction in time to see a wink directed at her by the woman. Lightning quickly turned away, feeling suddenly awkward but regained her composure and stood up to address the group.

"As cosy as this is, we can't stay here forever, we must move on."

Hope wiped his brow with the cloth around his wrist. "Yeah… I can't stand this heat much longer."

"And there's also a pack of Gorgonopsid's eyeing us up for lunch." Joked Fang.

The troupe gathered their belongings and made their way west, from the suggestion of Vanille, who made no attempt to expand on why. She had grabbed Sazh's large hand with both of her dainty ones, and dragged him forward to the front.

Lightning didn't like being left in the dark and chose to fall in line with the huntress who had taken up the rear of the group for defensive purposes.

"I'd appreciate knowing where she's leading us."

Fang made a sideways glance towards her.

"Yeah well, I ain't telling ya."

Lightning gritted her teeth.

"Fang-"

"I ain't telling ya, because I don't know myself, alright?" Fang interrupted.

Lightning simply rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, huffing in the process.

The moment's silence was ruined by Fang, chuckling to herself . Although Lightning knew she should simply ignore the woman, curiosity simply got the better of her.

"What's so funny?" She enquired.

"You are." Came the simple answer.

"Me?"

"Yeah. You getting all frustrated and stuff, it's…" Fang paused to take a breath.

"Go on." She urged.

"…_Cute_."

Lightning's icy eyes shot to the Pulsian, turning her head in order to face Fang fully, who was staring back at her intently, as if to gauge her reaction.

Judging by the sudden heat rising on her cheeks – her reaction wasn't favourable. Refusing to show any further acknowledgement of the comment, she wordlessly chanced another glance to Fang, whose bright emerald eyes glinted in victory.

Ahead of them, Vanille had opted to turn left down valley similar to the one they had just left, followed by Sazh, Hope then Snow. The two commandos were yet to turn the corner, when the startled voice of Sazh reached Lightning's ears. Without hesitation, she drew her blade and bolted around the corner, leaving a very bemused huntress behind.

"Come to daddy!" Lightning heard him call, presuming it was a war cry. She rounded the corner, noting that the smell surrounding the area was atrocious, like some foul beast had died-

She skidded to a halt as Snow sidestepped easily into her path.

"Hey now! Don't want to frighten the birdies now do we?" He mocked.

She forced herself from his grasp and practically shoved him out the way, muttering: "Don't touch me."

There was nothing to be alarmed about, she noted, feeling relieved - just a chocobo enthusiast and a dwelling of the golden birds themselves. The place was muddy – a combination of crashing waterfalls and stomping chocobo feet making the area rather marshy. Lightning had no idea why the birds would choose to inhabit an area surrounded by puddles and vicious frogs. The chocobos themselves looked ferocious however, without a doubt larger and fiercer than the ones she had seen years back on a trip to Nautilus with Serah. Their feathers were a darker, richer shade of gold, although more ruffled as if they preened less.

Vanille sidled into her view, hands clasped behind her back and giggling.

"Didn't mean to frighten you, Lightning, but I know Sazh and his son _loves _these guys."

The group allowed Sazh a few precious moments alone with the birds, watching has he had a one-sided conversation with his baby chocobo.

"Must be awful, losing a son." Vanille whispered sorrowfully from beside the sergeant.

_Then how about losing a sister. _Lightning thought cynically.

"And to believe it was all our fault." Fang said darkly from behind her. The thick Pulsian accent sent shivers down Lightning's spine. She had always found her voice to be enthralling.

Fang brushed past her, making a beeline towards Sazh, and the pink haired woman couldn't help but watch her move; hands on swaying hips confidently.

"Um, Light?"

Hope appeared nervous, and Lightning prayed that he hadn't followed her line of vision.

"What is it Hope?" She asked distractedly, straining her ears to listen into Fang and Sazh's conversation.

"Do you reckon we could hitch a ride on these things?" The boy looked optimistically towards herself and Vanille, who gasped when an idea struck her.

" –_what happened to Dajh wasn't you fault." _Lightning heard Sazh say in the background_._

"-of course, Hope! Give me a minute!" The redhead rushed off.

"_-and you, you've got Vanille." _Lightning frowned, what were they talking about? _"You weren't alone. That kept you going, didn't it?"_

Lightning heard no more and neither did she want to. What was that comment about Fang having Vanille? _Did Sazh know something that she didn't? _Anger bubbled up inside her, which she forced down. She unclenched her fists, unaware of ever clenching them and instead silently surveyed the area, pretending that it was what she had been doing the entire time as Fang passed her.

"_And you thought we were getting attacked." _Teased Fang seemingly oblivious to Lightning eavesdropping.

Vanille soon appeared from a large bush located near one of the waterfalls, holding piles of vegetation in her arms. "Here you go, guys! Chocobos just _love_ gysahl greens!"

* * *

><p>"I'm not sure this is a good idea." Lightning said simply.<p>

Vanille had almost gotten the group trampled on earlier by scaring away all but three chocobos and the group looked on in a mixture of interest and horror as the redhead chased them.

"C'mon Light! It's safe." Fang called from atop one of the birds, sitting uncharacteristically ladylike by choosing to sit side-saddle. "And it beats walking!"

Lightning folded her arms, the corner of her mouth curling slightly. "Who said anything about the chocobos? I meant sharing a bird with _you_."

Fang's mouth opened but didn't speak, unable to comprehend the fact Lightning, of all people, had said something remotely funny.

"Well I'll be, the tight ass Cocoon viper has a sense of humour."

Ignoring the comment, she quickly observed that the rest of the group seemed ready to depart; Snow lead the first bird, with Hope sat behind him, instructing the brawler on how to steer carefully. Vanille had taken charge of the second, knowing all to well how clumsy Sazh was when it came to chocobos, leaving Fang and herself to agree on who would lead the last bird. Fang appeared slightly impatient, patting the available space beside her.

"Fine. But I'm taking the reins." Lightning hoisted herself with ease upon the bird, refusing Fang's offered hand outright. It certainly wasn't comfortable, as they didn't have the luxury of saddles like she had with Odin.

"Where the hell am I supposed to hold on?" enquired Lightning, after wasting a good few minutes trying to work it out for herself. She was reluctant to place her hands anywhere near the bird's neck, weary of the mighty strong beak it owned. She felt Fang lean slightly, testing her tolerance as she placed her chin upon her right shoulder to have a look.

"Right here." The amusement evident in her voice as she indicated to a mass of feathers at the base of the chocobo's neck, her hand 'innocently' brushing Lightning's thigh slightly as she pointed. The soldier shivered, becoming flooded with unease. She was positive Fang had noticed her discomfort, as she then snaked her arm around her waist, causing all muscles to tense.

With a persuasive yet gentle kick from Snow, the leading chocobo sped off, releasing a mighty '_wark_!' as it did so. The two remaining groups followed suit, however it left Lightning wishing they had opted to walk instead; Fang's hold tightened, and as much as she didn't want to enjoy being in this one armed embrace, she couldn't help but feel at ease.

_No, you're forgetting who you are. _Lightning scolded herself. _You are not the damsel whose heart melts from a single touch. You are emotionless Sergeant from the Guardian Corps._

The thought brought her to her sister, who was more likely to react in such a girly manner just from being held than she ever was. A split-second image flashed across her mind of Serah and Snow in a similar hold, making the woman feel slightly sick at the thought.

They burst through the shaded valley, re-entering the warmth that enveloped the Archylte Steppe, already placing Lightning in a better mood than she had been in seconds before. The wind whistled past her ears, the stamina and speed of the chocobos was surely incredible as they made short work of the land.

"So how old are you?" Fang asked, her voice barely audible from the wind, even from behind her.

"I turned twenty-one almost two weeks ago. No doubt, it was the _best_ birthday ever." She joked.

Sensing the sarcasm, Fang pushed on. "And why is that, missy?"

"It was that day I found out Serah was a l'Cie, and that the big, idiotic oaf had proposed to her because of it… I couldn't help but be angry at how stupid she had been to say yes… and how it would be my job to hunt her down."

Her head dipped slightly and she frowned, annoyed with herself for all that had happened. It didn't go unnoticed by Fang.

"And what of Snow, he can't be any older than your little sister, right?"

Lightning laughed bitterly to herself at the sound of his name. "Wrong, he's my age, though he doesn't act it… what about you?"

"Me? I'm twenty-one also, not counting the five hundred years of missed birthdays, that is."

Fang sounded slightly proud, and the thought of Fang being five hundred years old amused the soldier greatly.

"I'd say the years are catching up on you, Fang." She said playfully, forgetting the painful events.

"Really now? I'd like you to say that again but this time to my – perfect - face. 'Coz you know I'm absolutely _stunning_."

Lightning scoffed, but tightened her hold on the chocobo's tuft of feathers before glancing over her shoulder at the sentinel's request. She was thankful to have kept her grip on the chocobo as what she saw was a gorgeous sight to behold - the sun highlighted her tanned skin perfectly, her raven hair blowing wildly about her face, but it was her captivating green gaze, bordered by the blackest of lashes that was the most alluring.

Fang tilted her head in order to observe the woman better.

"I knew you- oh _shit_ Light, watch out!"

Lightning's eyes widened in horror, she whipped her head round in time to collide with the hardened hide of a behemoth. Both women lurched forward, Fang making contact with the back of Lightning's head as they smashed together, leaving a dull ache. The chocobo screeched in dismay and reared back, causing the two l'Cie to fall off.

The commotion alerted the two groups in front.

Lightning and Fang both recovered instantaneously, picking themselves up and arming themselves without delay. The behemoth roared in pain, its left foreleg had ripped open from the previous collision. Lightning charged a Ruin spell and threw it into the beast's face; it exploded - blinding it temporarily, as Fang stalked up to it from behind, leaping high into the air. She slammed her spear between it's shoulder blades causing the behemoth to rear up slightly, however Fang was adamant to stay perched on the behemoth's back, digging the spear head in further, causing a bloodcurdling cry. From the distance, Sazh placed well-aimed shots at the fiend's exposed chest, whilst still sitting upon his chocobo. Hope and Snow aided the women by casting a flurry of spells, whilst Vanille – who had leapt from the chocobo – cast her rod round the behemoth's thick neck. Fang leapt from the beast as the rod's wires firmly attached, racing to Vanille in order to help pull the monster onto it's back. The tug of war didn't last long, the beast toppled over without much effort, causing Vanille and Fang to fall back as the tension broke. This opening was all Lightning needed to boldly run up it's broad chest and end it's life with a solid stab through the heart.

"Pulse ain't got anything on us, yeah!" Snow cheered.

Vanille quickly turned towards the blonde sentinel, pretending to be angry. "_Gran _Pulse, actually."

As the rest of the group inspected their joint kill, Lightning wandered towards an open expanse of Pulse, lost in thought.

_What was I doing staring at Fang like that? Wasn't I telling myself moments earlier, not to act weak, giving into emotion? We could have been killed and now she's going to think I'm interested. _

"Hey soldier girl, don't go wanderin' off now ya hear?" Sazh called from the distance.

"Yeah it could be dangerous." Said Hope to the remaining gang. "She's left her gunblade in the behemoth."

* * *

><p><em><span>AN: <span>Well that's chapter 2 done. I've literally came straight home and worked on it until the moment it was finished. If you're thinking 'Well there's not much there for half a night's work - that's because I'm writing snippets of upcoming chapters as I go. I hope you enjoy the chapter, and things will hopefully get more interesting the further they travel into Pulse. Like always, I'll appreciate any ideas and suggestions. But until then, enjoy!_


	3. Chapter 3: Chipped Fang

**Components**

**Chapter 3: - Chipped Fang (****A fang missing its tip, perhaps having bitten off more than it could chew.)**

Hope scrambled up the large chest of the fallen behemoth, studying the beast with a fascination and thoroughness that couldn't possibly be achieved when it was still breathing. The toughened hide of the behemoth was riddled with ancient patterns and swirls, hollowed out in fine lines, as well as black tattoo-like inscriptions on its chest and biceps. Hope placed both hands over the hilt of the gunblade, which protruded from the behemoth's bloodied heart, and yanked, mustering all his might – it didn't budge. Hope tried once more, making no progress. With what force had Lightning managed to drive the sword so deep? Hope prayed he would one day become as strong as the soldier – both mentally and physically.

"You'll need to twist it to get it out." Came the authoritative voice of Fang, who Hope had initially thought to be Lightning coming back to retrieve her sword. The Pulsian always made him feel on edge; he trusted her greatly, but knew there was always an element of surprise when it came to the woman.

"Right." Hope nodded, giving the method a try.

"So how did the Drill Sergeant manage to _not_ avoid a huge chunk of nasty like that?" Asked Sazh humorously, jerking his thumb towards the carcass.

Fang laughed. "It failed to avoid us actually." She watched as Hope successfully withdrew Lightning's sword from the behemoth.

"At least you're okay, Fang but… we're now a chocobo short!" Vanille whined, pointing at the remaining two birds which Sazh and Snow both occupied.

Snow awkwardly manoeuvred his chocobo in order to face the path Lightning had taken.

"Hey sis!" called Snow, cupping his gloved hand over his mouth to project his voice. "What're you doing?"

Lightning had not wandered far; knowing all too well that going too far without her gunblade would cause her a bit of trouble. She took slow, steady breaths, attempting to clear her head of its sudden dizziness. The knock to her head from Fang had suddenly caused her world to spin, and she felt rather nauseous. Holding a shaky hand in front of her, she tried in vain to cast a cure spell; her hand glowed a pale green before fading out. She could not concentrate. Whether it was from her head injury or from the battle in her head and heart, she did not know. The sound of gentle footsteps made its way to her ears and judging by the shadow that the figure cast, it was Hope.

"I brought your gunblade." He said softly.

She sensed him wait for acknowledgement, but when she denied him that luxury, he wordlessly placed her gunblade on the dusty ground by her feet and without order, cast a cure spell at the silent woman.

The relief washed over her like diving into cold water on a hot day; her neck cracked as she tested for any more pain, but to her inner delight there wasn't any. When the rest of her self-assessment was over, she abruptly turned on her heel, feeling slightly more renewed of her will to carry on. She approached the group, remembering to holster her gunblade, throwing aside her growing feelings of dread that had formulated in the pit of her stomach that the rest of the day would run as 'smoothly' as it had been so far.

As Lightning came into earshot of the group's conversation, she overheard a snippet of their next predicament.

"…We would end up walking around all friggin' day looking for another chocobo, it'd be quicker for us both to run." Said Fang logically, stretching her toned arms over her head, making a content noise as she did so, as if preparing for a jog.

"Well it'll sure be a sight watching you keep up with such an unpredictable wild bird." Sazh looked at Lightning and chuckled, patting the golden feathers of his transport.

"I'm more worried about keeping up with the chocobo, than Fang." Lightning retorted sarcastically.

Fang raised an eyebrow, managing to make the simple act seem so flirtatious, Lightning thought, regretting the idea of even looking at the huntress again.

_Ignore her. Ignore her. Ignore her. _

"You can't simply be suggesting that you'll run behind us, Fang?" Vanille shook her head in disbelief.

The determination behind Fang's eyes told Lightning that itwas exactly what she was implying they would do.

"You two won't get far." Hope said obviously. Fang rolled her eyes.

"We can at least scout ahead for you guys, I mean you do it all the time for us, sis. Hey y'know now I think about it… what are our sleeping arrangements for later?"

Snow raised a valid point, Lightning couldn't argue about that.

"Then it's settled. You two shall scout ahead and look for any suitable places to sleep. Fang and I will catch up."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Well then… we head north from here!" Vanille cried out dramatically, kicking her heels into the chocobo to race forward, with Snow and Hope tailing behind waving goodbye.

Both women watched as their friends disappeared into the distance with folded arms, both contemplating the journey ahead; Fang openly excited about the prospects of the adventure ahead, whilst Lightning secretly awaited the rest of the day's events with eager anticipation.

Fang broke the silence. Pointing in the direction their companions travelled.

"Over those mountains of sorts, lies our next destination."

Lightning knew this already, as did everyone, but understood that after their awkward moment upon the chocobo, the tension needed breaking.

"And that's... north?" She replied, trying to speak as normal as possible.

"Mm, yeah." Fang laughed to herself. "And we've got all the fun of the Mah'habara yet."

The pair set off into a well-paced jog; the sun blaring down over them at its highest point in the day. They remained silent in order to save their breath for running, allowing Lightning to marvel at the natural beauty that was Gran Pulse. The view from Bahamut had been stunning: vast amounts of feral creatures, copious exotic trees and many varieties of rock formations. Her favourite being the natural arrangement of stone archways, covered in moss, which Fang had directed Bahamut to fly through in an attempt to wow the new visitors to Gran Pulse.

It was then she thought of summoning Odin to get around quicker, her hand instinctively went to her heart, causing her sprint to slow down with loss of arm momentum. Fang overtook her, leaping over a small jutting ledge in order to get a look at what she was doing.

Through ragged breaths, Fang called out.

"Your brand troubling you?" Her faced darkened into a frown, clearly worried.

Lightning shook her head, also jumping the small ledge.

"Just a thought… what if…" They jumped down a larger outcrop, past a behemoth. "Can't we use the… eidolons?" Lightning panted.

Fang indicated to stop, and Lightning gladly obeyed, as a stitch in her side began to form. Lightning clutched at her side, her lungs searing and in desperate need of air.

"The reason we're not using our Eidolons is because we can't. They only allow us to summon them in times of need."

"So when you summoned Bahamut earlier-"

"Yeah. Fallin' to our deaths - one of those times." Fang joked through deep breaths. "Say… why don't we take a break? We've been running for hours."

Lightning nodded with silent relief, clutching at a stitch in her side. She moved to sit with her legs outstretched, crossing her legs at her ankles; determined to sit as ladylike as possible whilst Fang was present. She glanced in the opposite direction as Fang sat down cross-legged opposite her, noting that they had chosen to sit dangerously in the open, despite the risk of being ambushed by Pulse monsters. Strangely enough, she felt no sense of danger, nor did she feel the need to worry: she felt safe. Was she losing her well-tuned soldier instinct? Or did the Sentinel really make her that at ease?

"D'ya have anything to drink on ya?" Fang asked, interrupting any other thoughts. However Lightning could only shake her head, watching as Fang's brow furrowed.

"I'm not carrying any but… " Lightning cupped her hands together, casting a water spell into her hands. Stray droplets escaped through her fingertips as she moved to drink the water from her hands.

Lightning glanced up between mouthfuls to see Fang looking impressed for a grand total of five seconds.

"That's brilliant and all, but I'm no ravager... wanna lend a hand?" Fang held out her hands expectantly.

"No chance, try for yourself." Lightning smirked.

"Bloody hell, Light, where do I even start?" Fang said impatiently, cupping her hands together. She focused hard upon her palms, muttering 'water' over and over.

"You don't need to say anything, just visualise it – feel it – think Ruin spells." Instructed Lightning, shifting to kneel.

After almost ten minutes, Fang had conjured nothing more than a bead of water, causing Lightning great amusement although she didn't show it, as she watched Fang become more and more frustrated with herself.

Fang sighed, clenching the fist that held the droplet tightly in annoyance.

"Whoa!" Fang gasped, as the same fist burst into flames. The sudden blaze caught Lightning off guard; she watched as Fang leapt up shaking her hand in alarm, causing the fire to land inches away from Lightning's cape.

Lightning's boot made quick work of the fire, easily stamping it out. The grass below her foot had charred slightly. Turning her attention back to Fang, she watched as the Pulsian alternated looks between herself and the scorch mark, her mouth hanging open slightly in amazement.

"Oops?"

"It's… fine." She said, pushing back the irritation caused by her cape being close to becoming naught but ash.

"Come here." The tone of her voice sounded impatient.

Lightning motioned with a quick flick of her head for Fang to cup her hands as she had moments earlier, strands of hair falling into her vision as she did so. Fang did as requested; shuffling towards Lightning eagerly, who positioned her hands under Fang's own.

From what the Pulsian could see, the soldier appeared to be absorbed solely in the task in front of her, but for Lightning, the second her fingertips grazed warm hands of the woman in front of her - she felt electricity. The sensation was peculiar, a mixture of tingling nerves and numbness.

Ensuring she was still facing downwards, as to not alert Fang, Lightning lifted her gaze to see that Fang's intrigued facial expression hadn't changed from before. Lightning frowned, casting water spell into the woman's hands without another thought; in fear that Fang may guess something was wrong. Lightning was positive Fang had been trying to cast a thunder spell – as she certainly hadn't been – but her face had given no indication to say she had been. Did she imagine the spark she just felt?

The liquid that filled Fang's hands felt icy cold, to her delight, she ducked her head down to take several gulps of refreshing water.

"Aw, thanks Light." Fang winked as she wiped her chin.

"Don't mention it… really…" The fair-haired woman trailed off. "We need to make up for lost time. Let's go." Said Lightning, unconsciously wiping her hands on her skirt to rid the prickling feeling, as she stared off into the distance in her attempt to refuse Fang of any more eye contact.

* * *

><p>The chocobos bounced along the seemingly endless fields of Gran Pulse with great ease; the foursome had not been travelling long, yet managed to cover a vast amount of land.<p>

Vanille cherished the feeling of riding a chocobo again, after what felt like an eternity of not being able to do so, long before becoming a l'Cie five hundred years ago. The sensation of a strong breeze across her face, whipping at her curly ponytails, had been sorely missed. Judging by the increasing frequent complaints from the rest of her companions, they didn't share her same view on chocobo riding, as they moaned about chafing in places that Vanille did not want to comprehend. After their tenth comment about being in pain, the girl tugged at her chocobo abruptly, causing it to stop. Snow mirrored her actions in a _slightly_ rougher way, managing to pluck several silky feathers from his own ride, causing the chocobo to yelp.

"You guys are such whiners." She said, her voice slightly exasperated.

A varied chorus of 'Sorry Vanille' reached her ears from the three males, and she beamed in response.

"That's okay! I guess we can't go too far anyway, otherwise Fang or Lightning will never catch up!"

Signs of relief plastered their faces, Sazh's especially, causing the man to appear almost elderly as he complained of back pain.

Hope slid carefully from his chocobo's back before flopping onto the floor, tenderly massaging his thighs to rid the pain.

"Don't forget, Light also asked us to look for anywhere suitable to make camp."

"Hmm…" Vanille tapped at her chin with a slim finger. "You're right."

"No where out in the open, either. I refuse to wake up dead tomorrow." Sazh said light-heartedly.

Snow made his own attempt at dismounting the chocobo, as the tallest of the four; his feet met the ground less haphazardly than the others. He surveyed their surrounds with one hand shielding his face from the bright sunlight. His keen eyes stopped at the base of a treacherous wall of rock that was coated from top to bottom in moss, vines and plants he could not identify as being anywhere similar to Cocoon-like vegetation.

"Hey, hey! Guys! I think I found our base camp." He called out, using his free hand to point in the direction of an eerie black fissure in the same cliff face.

Sazh shuddered. "On second thoughts I'd rather sleep outside."

Hope tilted his head to the side, as if to consider the options.

"Better go check it out, then."

The group chose to tow their chocobos towards the tall, yet narrow crack in the cliff, every step causing the oversized birds to rear back and attempt to flee. It took all the persuasive force of Snow and Sazh to coax the golden birds any further.

When they reached the entrance, the four tentatively looked at each other. Without the demanding leadership of Lightning or Fang, who always seemed certain of their next plan of action, it left Snow as the default leader, who wasn't exactly known thinking ahead, or thinking at all.

Nervously scratching his head, Snow took a less than confident step closer to cave.

"Right well, I guess I'll check it out first then…" The blonde took a deep breath, before disappearing into the darkness.

"Careful Snow!" echoed Vanille's voice as she called after him.

Snow walked blindly into the cave, listening hard for any signs of unwelcome creatures, only capable of hearing his own heartbeat in his ears.

The cave gradually became wider he noted, her fingertips now barely able to brush the craggy walls.

"Don't worry about me! The coast is clear… I think." Snow bellowed back.

When he could no longer see anything, he lit a fire spell into his hand and threw it with the force of a juggernaut's right hook. The spell acted like a flare, shooting through the remaining forty metres of the cave before ricocheting off the wall.

As he did so, he caught glimpses of bared fangs and slow moving tails, flicking back and forth in anticipation. _Gorgonopsids._

Snow turned tail instantly, causing the beasts to leap into action, and chase after him.

"Oh shit! St-steelguard!" He croaked. Just in time to feel the strong jaws of a gorgonopsid latch onto his leg.

As he dived out of the cave, he wrestled with the beast, kicking with all his might in an attempt to free his leg. The beast whipped its neck ferociously, trying to rip Snow's leg free from his body, snarling all the while. The commotion did nothing to sooth the chocobo's nerves, they tore free from Hope and Vanille's grip, fleeing into the open.

"We gotcha back, son!" Exclaimed Sazh, as he shot the opposing gorgonopsid. Blood splattered everywhere from the point blank range of the shot to its back. Vanille and Hope had instantly drew their respective weapons and stopped the next onslaught of gorgonopsids with a flurry of spells, finishing them off quickly.

"Is that the last of them?" asked Hope, cautiously peering into the cave.

Vanille cast a series of cure spells towards Snow. "I sure hope so for your sake, Snow." She giggled.

* * *

><p>"The chocobo tracks are becoming less prominent." Lightning pointed out, still refusing to look at Fang. They had been using them to gauge the exact direction the other group had taken.<p>

Fang stopped to trace the lines of the tracks, studying them in depth.

"They probably got tailed by a pack of 'nopsids… not to worry, judging by the lack of blood, the chocobos outran them eventually."

Fang looked up towards Lightning, who quickly turned away.

"What's up?" Fang queried.

"Nothing. What do you mean?" The soldier still didn't grace Fang with eye contact.

Lightning feigning ignorance? Whatever next? Fang mused.

"Don't 'nothing' me. C'mon I can tell something's up… you're acting all funny." With both hands on her hips, Fang leaned forward, tilting her head in order to meet Lightning's eyes, which were focussed on the ground.

Lightning merely frowned and turned her back to Fang.

"We're wasting time let's go already…"

Fang worked her way around Lightning with folded arms, in order to study her body language.

"Come to think of it, you been actin' rather funny since we fell off the chocobo…"

"Fang…" Lightning warned through gritted teeth.

It was a signal that she was getting close to reaching the problem, Fang was certain. She narrowed her emerald eyes as she stepped behind Lightning; quick as a flash she grabbed the soldier's cape and wrapped it around her body like she would rope.

"Fang what the hell?" Lightning hissed, thrashing her body as if she were in great pain.

"What's gotten your cape in a twist?" She taunted, pulling the cape tighter around Lightning so that her arms were locked by her side. Fang hauled Lightning back, capturing her between her toned arms.

"Fang I'm gonna _kill_ you I swear." Lightning's voice was pure venom.

Fang leaned her chin upon Lightning's left shoulder, making sure to squeeze the woman extra tight, all the while Lightning still writhed around.

"Could it be…" Fang whispered seductively in Lightning's ear, causing the soldier to blush furiously at the close contact. "… me perhaps?"

Fang finished by planting a tender kiss upon Lightning's warm cheek. Allowing her soft to lips linger long enough to rile the soldier up past the point of no return.

The sergeant snapped.

Releasing a war cry that easily rivalled Fang's own in battle, Lightning twisted her body to face Fang whilst still in her tight grip, and before the Pulsian could even blink, a steel-toed boot hammered into her gut, knocking her flat onto the turf.

The sound of metal scraping metal alerted Fang to the switching of gun to blade; she rolled to her left, in time to miss almost becoming skewered by Lightning's sword, which had became planted inches deep into the ground.

"Miss, much?" Fang mocked.

Before Lightning could pull her sword out to take another stab, Fang charged like a silver lobo into the Cocoon native, crashing into her right side. They wrestled upon the ground until Fang had Lightning to the floor, their hands interlocked in a battle to bend each other's knuckles back to breaking point; however Fang had the upper hand in terms of strength.

Once Lightning's back was pressed firmly to the ground, Fang leapt off the soldier, making a run for the direction of their companions.

"Get back here Fang!" yelled Lightning, her anger increasing steadily as she picked herself up from the ground, neglecting to dust down her uniform in order to make up for her loss of distance against Fang.

"Not a chance in hell, Light!" Fang called from over her shoulder as she sprinted away from Lightning, who now wished to skin her alive. She raced towards the nearest rock formation, clambering up in a desperate attempt to gain some height advantage. She skipped across more rocks, eyeing the next destination ahead of her: more mountainous terrain.

Fang quickly glanced behind her, regretting the decision as Lightning was leaping past ever obstacle with terrifying ease. Fang's lance proved a hindrance as she scaled each rock, as it knocked and scraped against the stone, slowing her movement. Analysing what was ahead of her; she noted her next obstruction as being a simple drop into a valley, which she had the intention of jumping across to a higher part of the Archylte Steppe. Inside the valley, laid the home of megistotherians and king behemoths, which she did not intend to fall into and otherwise suffer a worse fate than she was in for now. An idea struck her mind as quick one of Lightning's attacks. Still running, she charged a Ruin spell in one of her hands, which she intended to throw behind her at Lightning.

* * *

><p>Lightning was beginning to find it increasingly easier to close the distance between them, treating the rocks like nothing more than an obstacle course in the Guardian Corps training field. Her eyes narrowed as she observed the huntress. The charging of a Ruin spell did not go unnoticed.<p>

_I'm no idiot Fang; you're going use that as a distraction before you jump so I don't shoot you during your landing. _Lightning didn't need to stop to think of her next plan of action, instantly switching from blade to gun mode she fired relentlessly at the back of Fang whilst she ran.

* * *

><p>Gunshots echoed throughout the Archylte Steppe, sounding rather close; the noise had alerted Sazh who was sitting cross-legged at the cave entrance. He squinted his eyes, glancing to the east, where he spotted two recognisable figures not far from where they were situated. He called Vanille over, who was building a fire with wood she located nearby.<p>

"Wanna go get them, or shall I?" He asked with a chuckle.

"No, no it's fine. I'll go." Said Vanille, skipping towards where she had placed her weapon.

Sazh thought it wise not to tell the unsuspecting girl that there appeared to be a conflict between the two women.

* * *

><p>Upon hearing the first round of bullets speed past her right ear, Fang had made no hesitation to crouch slightly as she ran, meeting the border of the grassy ledge in no time at all. She leapt as high and as far as her muscles would allow, twisting herself in mid air to throw the spell she had been holding back at Lightning, a grunt escaping her lips has she did so.<p>

Lightning would have expected this move, Fang presumed, as the soldier performed her own series of acrobatics in order to dodge the spell. However, before the huntress could see the outcome of her attack, she landed into a roll successfully down the other side of the valley, and didn't stop until she hit knee-deep grass, which flattened out slightly with her weight.

From what Fang observed as she slowed to a halt, Lightning hadn't ran down the hill after her, and took this as an opportunity to get her breath back, with her arms outstretched and her lance just centimetres from her grasp on the grass beside her.

Shaking her head from the sudden dizziness, Fang sensed that something was off when she realised she had been staring into a void for a good few minutes without the worry of Lightning beheading her.

She pondered a number of different reasons._ Is this a trap or did she fall?_ Lightning lying unconscious or dead at the bottom of the valley with limbs positioned unnaturally like a cactuar sprung to mind, and she bit back a chuckle. On the off chance that Lightning _was_ hurt she eventually picked herself and jogged back up to cliff's edge, clawing at the grass as she stumbled back to the top, lungs still burning. As she reached the peak, the sight of a hard, focussed face and two scrambling arms came to view, much to Fang's relief. She hadn't fell, but she hadn't exactly made the landing either.

* * *

><p>Lightning never anticipated the non-elemental spell to in fact be a wider ranged Ruinga and she cursed herself for it, as well as the Pulsian. Although she had dodged most of it, the explosion afterwards had thrown her off course, landing just short of the cliff. Her midsection had slammed into side of the rock face, leaving her winded and scraping at the tufts of grass while she tried to find a foothold.<p>

"You tricky little Pulse worm!" she growled as Fang came into view, the grass easily tore away in her grasp, causing her to slip dangerously, her fingertips leaving a trail in the soft dirt.

"Hey there Light, how's it hanging?" Fang beamed, unfazed about Lightning's predicament as she peered down the side, whistling as she judged the falling distance.

"Now if ya promise not to attack me, I'll help you up." She said, bending down to grab the soldier's right hand.

Lightning scowled and squirmed at the touch in an attempt to shake off Fang's hold on her.

"I don't need your goddamn help Fang, I can get out of this myself."

"I don't think you can, Lightning, otherwise you would have done so already. You aren't the type to mess around, are ya?"

"I'm still hanging here, Fang, because I intend to murder you _now_, if I'd have dropped down I'd have to climb back up and that would take too long." Her fingertips began to tingle, whether it was from her desperate clawing at the ground, or from the thought that her anti-gravity system could get her out of this mess easily, despite the long walk back.

"How 'bout we call it a draw Light?" offered Fang once more.

"We _aren't_ sparring." She hissed in reply.

Fang hoisted the soldier to safety despite the woman's protests. Once she safe from harm the soldier refused to speak another word and to Fang this meant Lightning had calmed down, and she could now let down her guard. Lightning's eyes were now staring blankly in Pulsian's direction as she stood, placing her gunblade back into its holster. Fang picked up her lance as she turned to leave, but regretted this decision when without warning, the force of a juggernaut ploughed into her back. Lightning had charged unexpectedly into her, sending both women tumbling down the grassy slope where Fang had originally rolled. Fang found herself flat on her back once again, with the soldier piled on top of her, one of her arms lost under Fang, entangled within the draped part of her sari. She growled, pulling her hand free and flexing it for good measure.

"Don't look at me like that was my fault, sweetheart, coz it sure as hell ain-"

Fang was cut short by a sharp backhand to the face, causing her to lose the rest of her words as the bittersweet memories of their first meeting to flash into her head. The pain did not arrive instantly; only first did she become aware of the almighty _crack_ that was the sound of sergeant's hand making contact with her face. Lightning repositioned herself into a kneel, her legs either side of Fang's waist, her gloved hands finding their way the front of her sari, grasping the silky fabric as tight as a wyvern would hold it's prey.

Keeping her voice low and calm as not to provoke the woman, Fang said: "I can tell by your face you've got something to say, Light. So what's your problem?"

As if her words had a magic effect, Lightning's eyes had softened slightly, taking up a look of contemplation. _Her anger is finally fading, perhaps?_ A gentle breeze had picked up, blowing strands of fair pink hair across her face, hiding any other hints of emotion from Fang. Her grasp did not relinquish over Fang's sari, only tightening more as she pulled Fang closer, absorbing every striking feature on the tanned woman's face, eyes stopping finally upon her lips momentarily.

Uncharacteristically, Fang waited quietly in anticipation, too curious about this new inquisitive side to the soldier to make a move herself. _Is she about to…?_

_"Faaang?"_

Lightning flinched, as did Fang.

The voice was faint, mixing with the sound of the wind that blew around the two warriors. Such a delicate voice, Fang thought, could only belong to Vanille.

Lightning carefully observed the scenery behind her like a animal scanning for predators; Vanille was not in sight, but would no doubt arrive to see the two in their scuffle. It was at this point Fang mused to herself that she must be in the bad books of Lady Luck today, as rage appeared once again in Lightning's eyes. To Fang, it seemed Lightning acted from a mixture of panic and anger when she swiftly raised a fist and gave the huntress an unforgiving punch to the face.

"You're right. You _are_ my problem." She muttered before dashing off into the even taller grass behind Fang, who was unsure if she had heard Lightning correctly, or had meant to hear it at all.

She cautiously touched below her eye, where the soldier had struck her, and winced instantly before closing her eyes in wait for Vanille, who would no doubt find her eventually.

* * *

><p><strong><em>AN: _**_The last section of this chapter was actually the first part of this story I wrote, so I hope everything is clear enough since in the end I essentially merged two chapters together. I'm making it my new mission to create longer chapters from here on out, rejoice! I hope you enjoy the chapter, because I definately enjoyed writing it. _


	4. Chapter 4: Aurora Scarf

**Components**

**Chapter 4: ****Aurora Scarf**** - (First Strike) **

Fang woke abruptly to the sound of Vanille repeatedly calling her name and shaking her awake. Frowning to herself, Fang wondered when it was she had fallen asleep and how long it had taken Vanille to find her.

"Are you okay? Why are you lying unconscious here anyway, Fang? And… where's Lightning? Did she do that to your face?" All the while, Vanille had been looking at Fang with a concerned look, her face threatening to darken into an emotion that broke the huntress's heart each time: sorrow.

"Whoa, hold on a sec, one question at a time…" Fang purposely laughed to brighten the mood. "Course I'm fine, why wouldn't I be, hmm? I don't specialise as a sentinel for nothin' y'know?"

She reached up to stroke her sister's face lovingly, before sweeping away the hair that had fallen into her eyes.

"Secondly, I'm lying here because I fancied a rest, yeah? I don't _do_ unconscious."

The corner of Vanille's mouth turned up slightly at this comment, but her brilliant green eyes remained in their lie-detector mode, which meant Fang was keenly being studied as they conversed.

Aware that Vanille's eyes had been particularly interested on the forming bruise on her cheekbone, she instinctively moved to catch the smaller girl's wrist the second Vanille shifted to touch the woman's face.

"And _no._" She stressed. "Light didn't do this to me, it was a goblin… one of the damn things just got lucky. Light just went to finish 'em off, that's all."

Fang pointed in the direction of knee-deep grass behind her, to vaguely indicate where Lightning had ran off to.

The redhead's beautiful large eyes narrowed as she looked between the tall grass and Fang.

"Mhm, well, I'm only here because Sazh saw you in the distance. We found an old lobo nest full of gorgonopsids to the north… there may have been a mutiny." Vanille giggled to herself. "But we did a little pest control… the cave is ours."

"That's great!" Fang said enthusiastically as Vanille offered to help her up and smooth down her clothing. "Show me the way." She said, placing her hand on the small of Vanille's back to urge her to lead. Vanille nodded and skipped a few paces ahead before turning on her heels and looking back to Fang.

"What about Lightning? She won't know where we-"

"She's a born survivor that one, no doubt she'll find us." Interrupted Fang, who turned to stare longingly at the grassy fields the soldier had fled into, sighing as she did so.

As to not make her sister anymore suspicious, Fang quickly caught up to Vanille.

"Is it very far then, Miss Dia?" She said playfully.

"Not really, buuuut… I'd like a piggyback!" Vanille squealed, quickly dashing behind Fang and leaping on her back, regardless of her response. Fang groaned in response, pretending to buckle under the girl's weight.

"Hey, What're you trying to say?" Vanille gasped, flailing about on Fang's back in an attempt to hit the saboteur, careful to avoid the lance. Once she had enough, she looped her arm around Fang's neck.

The Pulsian sun had lowered significantly since the start of their journey, causing a long stretch of shadow to form in front of Fang from her feet. The setting of the sun meant the climate was a lot cooler and therefore bearable to travel in, not that the two Oerbans had any problems to begin with. After what seemed to be half an hour of silence, Fang guessed that Vanille had fallen asleep due to the sound of slow, controlled breathing in her ear.

_Brilliant_. _I wanted her to heal my bruise. _

Rather than retrace her steps back down the perilous mountainside, Fang searched for,

and found, a gradual declining slope, to her relief; the thought of carrying Vanille down the way she had originally came would be suicide.

With her only clue of her friends' whereabouts being 'north' and 'cave' Fang headed in that direction, which was coincidently the route they would need to soon take anyway. The girl on her back shifted slightly in her sleep, nuzzling her head against Fang. Despite the sweetness of it all, Fang didn't particularly want to carry Vanille for much longer, as her muscles protested with every movement. The slope she had been sauntering down started to become more uneven and rocky, yet despite a stumble or two, her sister did not stir.

As much as she loved the smaller girl, Fang prayed to Lady Luck that Vanille was accurate with her directions. As she walked, she cast her mind back to her childhood to occupy herself, thinking of the orphanage and all the mischief she and Vanille would get up to, before shifting to the present and their current predicament as l'Cie.

The thought of her newfound friends – no- _family_ turning C'ieth pained her greatly; her heart constricted at the very notion of losing Vanille, her best friend, her sister… and the new addition to her heart, Lightning. At the very thought she bit her tongue; the only physical pain she could inflict on herself at that moment to stop anger from building up.

_This l'Cie business is a curse and a blessing._

She needn't have worried at the thought of getting back before sundown, it seemed, as a flicker of light caught her eye in the distance. After an agonizing mile long hike northward, the glorious sight of two blotchy figures encircled around a campfire greeted Fang, behind them stood the ominous cave as Vanille had promised.

A Ruin spell became a much-needed flare to alert the two she saw to her presence, which finally become known; Snow stood tall and waved whilst Sazh casually made his way towards the Oerbans, dragging his feet as if it were a chore.

_It's not as if he had to walk all this way. _Fang thought bitterly.

Meeting halfway, the two nodded in approval at each other.

"Forgive me if I'm wrong, but there should be another with you."

Multiple excuses rolled around on Fang's tongue. For the sake of simplicity however, she relayed the same explanation as she did with Vanille.

The man nodded, the excuse seemed feasible.

"I'm afraid Hope's turned in for the rest of the evening, so until soldier girl returns, you'll have to settle for a potion." Sazh said.

"And I'll sure as hell take one, but I kinda have my hands full at the minute." Fang responded in kind with her trademark sarcasm.

The man seemed to get the message, and Fang wordlessly allowed Sazh to pry Vanille from her weary back, appearing to be stuck onto her with the force of a limpet clinging to a rock. The older man hooked his arms under the limp arms and knees of the redhead, and with great ease, carried her back towards the cave. It wasn't until Fang had sat down that she realised how exhausted she was.

The potion Fang received lessened the pain to her face, yet the bruise still remained, to her displeasure.

The reassuring, overly firm gloved hand of Snow slapped her shoulder. Normally, she would take the blow and deal him one back harder, but right now she felt uncharacteristically weak.

"Man, you look beat. Why not turn in early?" Snow suggested, rubbing her shoulder with slight concern etched on his face.

Fang placed her opposite hand upon his, and patted it firmly.

"Nah, I'm fine, just all aches and pains." She gestured to her bruised face. "On the contrary, I don't think I could sleep for a long time yet, so why don't you let me take the first watch?"

Her determined stare dared him to say no.

He removed his hand and made a defensive gesture. "If you're sure."

Lightning did not grace the camp with her presence that evening, during which Fang spent her time devouring a tasty supper of roasted gorgonopsid meat. Her companions slept peacefully within the cave, however Fang refused to do so with Lightning still out in the wilderness that was Gran Pulse. Fang busied herself finding extra wood for the campfire, which she stoked every so often to ensure it would continue burning; it would act a beacon for miles, attracting both its intended audience and uninvited fiends. Although she promised both Snow and Sazh that she would wake either of them up for their own shift, the huntress had no intention of doing so.

If Lightning were to return, Fang would be the one awake to see it.

After hours of staring into murky nothingness, Fang had retreated to the mouth of the cave, utterly bored and completely drained of all energy. She sat cross-legged at the entrance, with the rest of her body hunched forward and her head resting on her hands. The terrain wasn't ideal for sentry duty or sleeping; she squirmed around to sweep stray pebbles from underneath her that were digging into her sharply.

_I may never sleep tonight. _She thought drearily. _Or maybe she wants me asleep, the predator. _

She shuffled to place her back against one of the cave walls once she became too uncomfortable and irritated; she had thrown one of the stones in annoyance and caused it to echo noisily off the opposite wall.

Fang reclined as best as possible, with her legs just short of touching the other wall as she cradled her lance, finally succumbing to sleep.

Fang jolted awake to the soreness of a stiff neck from leaning her head against the wall, her bones cracked as she massaged her neck and she groaned with relief. What seemed to only have been a few minutes of sleep had actually been longer -judging by the smouldering remains of the fire.

It was then she noticed unfamiliar warmth stretched across the length of her left leg. Slowly turning her head to the left, Fang flinched, cracking her head on the wall behind her.

Directly opposite, with her legs brushing Fang's and arms crossed, with a predator-like stare, was Lightning.

At first, Fang glanced deeper into the cave to check on her sleeping companions, then turned back to observe the soldier.

"Where the bloody hell have you been?" Fang hissed, her voice low as to not disturb anyone. She didn't answer. Fang had been expecting a witty remark.

She used the silence to study the woman, who didn't seem to have gone through any torment in her lone escapade. Not a single injury graced her striking features, despite their previous scuffle. At the thought, Fang's tanned hand reached up to brush her own cheekbone; the pain had gone, as had the slight swelling.

"You been touching me?" She smirked. Her voice sounded slightly more seductive than she anticipated.

Lightning mirrored her smirk, a dangerous twinkle apparent in her aqua eyes.

Fang moved her lance out of her grip as she unfolded her arms, reaching out to place her right hand upon Lightning's shin, absorbing the intricacy of the woman's boots with her fingertips.

'Well?" Fang urged, giving her ankle a squeeze as he looked into the moonlight-streaked face of Lightning, which did not contain even a hint of fatigue, it only added to the woman's god-like status in being perfect.

Lightning tilted her head to regard the landscape, to watch the dazzling trail of fireflies, rather than the alluring viridian glances of Fang.

Her mind raced a mile a minute. Fang's hand remained upon her leg, as her thoughts remained upon Fang.

_Damn woman._

"Go to sleep, Fang." She ordered, which didn't seem to settle well with the Pulsian, as the pressure to her leg increased. She hastily kicked her off, picking herself up from the floor to wander outside the cave.

"_Light_-"

Naturally she expected the Oerban to follow her like a loyal puppy, anticipating that she would place a hand on her shoulder and pull her back at some point. In a flash Lightning spun around, simultaneously drawing her blade to cut Fang off before she could make contact with her skin, as if her touch were acidic.

The two stood motionless: one defenceless, one borderline homicidal. Moonlight caressed their flawless forms, though neither could enjoy each other's angelic features with a thick tension in the air.

Fang's hand itched, knowing she had foolishly left her lance behind; though only a few paces away, one wrong move in her retrieval could prove fatal.

"Come now, Light. Even you don't murder someone in cold blood." Fang jested.

"Don't tempt me."

Lightning swung her sword upwards in an arc shape, holding back a war cry as the tip of her blade narrowly missing Fang's nose as she withdrew backwards.

"Damn right, I'll _tempt_ you." Purred Fang.

Lightning bolted forwards swinging the Blazefire saber wildly at Fang, who leaped sideways. They circled each other, Lightning purposely placing herself between Fang and the cave.

"Now for a taste of your own medicine, Fang." Lightning warned, throwing a Ruin spell at Fang from a point-blank range. The spell lit up their battleground temporarily, lighting up Fang's face enough to show the surprise etched upon her features. She allowed the spell to hit, locking her arms in front of her face to reduce damage, as she hit the floor with a muffled _thump_.

Lightning stalked up to Fang, pointing the blade edge to Fang's exposed neck. Fang seeming to regard her assailant with more enthusiasm that needed, deliberately eyeing the length of Lightning's toned legs as she approached.

Careful of stabbing the blade into her own throat, Fang propped herself up with her elbows, swapping her interest in Lightning with the Blazefire saber instead. Lightning remained as she was, tightening her grip when Fang's hand boldly moved to stroke the length of the blade with her fingertips.

"Why didn't I notice this before?"

Lightning instinctively reached for her navel, and the piercing concealed behind her jacket, but dropped her hand when she realised Fang wasn't referring to it.

"No love, I already know what you've got hidden under there." Fang responded, adding a wink. "I mean this inscription on your sword here."

Undecided on where Fang was taking this, Lightning poked the sword closer to her throat in case it was all a ruse.

"I had my name engraved on it, so what?"

Lightning figured Fang would not be able to read inscription, as it was written with the Cocoon alphabet.

Fang chuckled, causing the hairs on the back of the soldier's neck to rise.

"No, I'm talking 'bout the Pulsian description here." She said, working a finger upon the engraved words.

Lightning frowned. The other inscriptions were written using the Pulse alphabet?

"What does it say?" She asked, as her interested now truly peaked.

"It says 'put the sword away and be civilised.'" Lightning snorted. "But really… it says 'Invoke my name – I am Spark.'" Fang trailed a finger upon the shorter inscription. "And this bit says 'blinding instant'… nice, huh?"

Lightning pulled the blade towards her to examine the words herself. She had always presumed the marks were merely a stamp from the creator of the gunblade.

Fang made to get up, but Lightning placed the sword back to her neck with one quick motion.

"Not so fast." She interjected. She felt herself become more and more wound up by Fang's actions as the woman casually placed her arms behind her head, drawing the soldier's attention to her full chest as she too ka deep breath.

"I'm getting pretty tired of your antics. Leave me alone, I'm… not interested." Lightning said tiredly.

"Yeah, right. 'Not interested' my ass." Fang licked her lips slowly, wanting Lightning to take in every bit of her seduction.

"I'm immune to these little games you play, Fang. What part do you not understand? I'm. _Not_. Interested." Lightning reaffirmed.

Fang sat up, pushing the gunblade away from her throat daringly with a single finger, as she slid her left hand across the top of the blade to grip Lightning's wrist.

"I think you should join me down here, Light."

Fang was obviously going to persist with her emotional tormenting, as she used her free hand to gesture that Lightning should come closer, curling a long finger slowly.

At this point, Lightning's heart drummed hard in her chest, feeling momentarily helpless as the dark temptress's hand snaked up to her own, forgetting that she had been angry. She swallowed.

"Look at you, Light." Fang said, prying the sword from her iron grip. "One minute you're pissed off, the next minute you're all hesitant…"

Lightning found herself being pulled closer to Fang, who had sat up slightly to meet her halfway.

Fang's gaze pierced her own in a way that felt like her very soul was exposed. It was at that very moment that time froze around them, only beginning again once Fang inched closer to her face, pulling the soldier down on all fours on top of her.

Fang leaned in to close the gap - Lightning twitched – and a kiss was placed on her cheek instead. However Fang's invasion didn't stop there; although silently irked that the sergeant had moved, Fang trailed delicate kisses up the soldier's jaw line, leaving a tingling sensation on Lightning's skin in her wake.

The arm that was propping Lightning up gave way, causing her to fall further into Fang, who let go of her wrist in favour of tracing her hand into Lightning's soft hair as her kisses lowered to her neck.

She involuntarily moaned when Fang sucked at her neck, then began nibbling her ear, and her eyes fluttered shut, cutting off the unneeded sensory, to focus more on Fang's alluring touch.

Fang rolled them over, temporarily breaking contact to gently place Lightning underneath her, and take in the gloriously flustered sight before her.

_This is wrong. So very wrong. _Lightning tried to tell herself, but her actions betrayed her lust filled mind when she forcefully grabbed a fistful of fabric, and pulled Fang down onto her lips anyway.

Her heart exploded; her eyes rolled back into her head and a euphoric feeling washed over her as Fang wasted no time in prying her lips apart with her very talented tongue.

The hands of both women travelled to each other's hair, tugging, pulling and ensuring a firm grip so neither could escape. Lightning found the braids in Fang's hair particularly interesting, looping them around her slender fingers, whilst Fang enjoyed combing her fingers through Lightning's own tresses.

They broke apart to breathe, and Lightning finally took notice of the changing colour of the sky.

"I think it's best if we go to bed now." She panted. "No Fang, to_ sleep._" She corrected, when the suggestion only succeeded in Fang giving her an excited look.

"Fine." Fang hesitantly rolled of her.

Picking herself up and dusting herself off, Lightning turned to face the cave, her face feeling rather warm.

"You go in first and lie down, at least make it look like I've taken over guard duty. I think it's time Snow got up off his lazy ass next."

Fang nodded, letting her desiring gaze linger over Lightning, before heading for the cave.

Lightning slowly sauntered over to where her gunblade lay, repeating the last few minutes in her head.

_What have I just unleashed?_

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **I've worked on this chapter in little bits, whenever inspiration hit, I wrote. Just a question, would anyone like this to change to an M Rating, or are we happy as it is? Because I'm up for a challenge! I'm also thinking up another story involving these two, perhaps slighty AU just to keep it interesting.

Until next time! x


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